Will Hollywood Make Sure That Netflix Faces Competition Overseas?

That’s what some analysts here predict after looking at the deal Disney announced yesterday to license movies and TV shows to NetMovies Entertainment, a Brazilian competitor to Netflix. The release says this is “the first major global studio deal for NetMovies,” which is described as “Brazil’s largest and most comprehensive online subscription service for movies and TV series” with more than 35,000 titles in its library. The multiyear deal will enable NetMovies’ subscribers to see a “large array” of Disney’s movie and TV content via broadband — including the first three Pirates of the Caribbeanfilms, Wild Hogs, Desperate Housewives, Criminal Minds, and Brothers And Sisters. Customers also can rent DVD and Blu-ray discs. Susquehanna Financial Group analyst Vasily Karasyov says this morning that the agreement with Disney “illustrates our argument that studios will work hard to ensure that Netflix isn’t the only buyer of streaming rights.” And although BTIG analyst Rich Greenfield questions how well financed NetMovies is, with competitors such as Amazon, Apple, Dish Network, and Google ramping up their online video businesses here Disney’s agreement with NetMovies could cause Netflix’s “wounds to fester” as it tries to expand in Latin America. International growth “is becoming more important daily” for Netflix, he says.